


All Gingers Go to Hell

by Nikki_Writes



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Death, Demonic Possession, Gen, Ghosts, Ginger - Freeform, Hell, Probably a lot of it, Self-Insert, Supernatural - Freeform, Tags Are Hard, Ugh, Wendigo, Witches, kinda goes with the events of season nine, not the winchesters though
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-23
Updated: 2017-08-29
Packaged: 2018-12-19 03:01:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,632
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11888562
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nikki_Writes/pseuds/Nikki_Writes
Summary: During a hunt in a small Indiana town, a teenage girl ends up on the Winchester's team after mistakes are made.  She's small, and frankly not much of a fighter, but shit happens and they have to endure it.- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -A/N:  Takes place around season nine-ish.  It doesn't follow a lot of the plot, but it is in that general time frame and may contain some spoilers.





	1. Glennwoods Lane

**Author's Note:**

> If I missed any tags, please let me know  
> \--  
> Beta'd by sklynn46

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> During a hunt in a small Indiana town, a teenage girl ends up on the Winchester's team after mistakes are made. She's small, and frankly not much of a fighter, but shit happens and they have to endure it.
> 
> \- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
> 
> A/N: Takes place around season nine-ish. It doesn't follow a lot of the plot, but it is in that general time frame and may contain some spoilers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If I missed any tag, please let me know.  
> -  
> Beta's by sklynn46

            “Alright, this is it.”  Sam says, reading the town sign as they pass.  A rather simple wood sign with a picture of Indiana on it reads:  Welcome to Rockport.

            “This is the town where people went missing?”  Dean scoffs.  They pull into a gas station to fill up the Impala, and change, after a long drive.  “I hate to ask this again, Sammy, but are you really sure this is our kind of weird?  I mean, don’t people go missing in small towns all the time?”  The elder brother inquires, handing Sam money for gas.

            “Ten people, Dean.  In one night.  All related and all living less than a mile away from each other.”  The tall brunette explains, grabbing a duffle bag and heading into the gas station.  He later waves at Dean to start pumping before heading to the bathroom.

            The taller of the two brothers walks back out in his cheap “fed suit”, taking over the gas pump while Dean goes to change.

            Sam takes this time to look around.  They’re barely even crossed into the town and it’s blatantly obvious how small it is.  There are almost no cars out.  Considering it’s a week day, most kids are probably in school by now.  There are two restaurants directly across the street, neither are very busy at this time of day.

            The gas pump clicks, and he removes it.  Dean returns just as he’s replacing the gas cap.  “So,” the shorter of the two starts, “where did it all happen?”

            “Well, we can probably ask down at the police station up the street.”  Sam suggests.

            They get back in the Impala, and continue driving straight down the road they came in on.  No even five minutes later they’re parking in front of a tiny Police Station on the corner of the shortest Main Street the duo has ever seen.

            “A bit small.”  Dean comments, to which Sam retorts with, “It’s a small town.”

            Grabbing their fake badges, they make their way inside.  After a bit of waiting and talking with the front desk, they find the Sheriff is out sick.  They get to talk with a deputy instead.

            “Agent Hammer and my partner Agent Armmond.  We’re here about the missing persons case.”  Sam introduces as they flash their FBI badges.  The office seems surprised, and is obviously ready to question what two federal agents are doing in such a small town.  It’s probably pretty rare, or maybe even completely unheard of, for any officer about a local level to even pass through this town.

            “Oh, yeah.  That was the Glenn family.  Really well-liked in this town, and just about everywhere else.”  The officer says.  “Highly unlikely it was murder, from what we understand, that is.  All the questioning has been really hard on Nikki, though.”

            “Who’s Nikki?”  Dean asks.  There hadn’t been a Nikki mentioned in any of the reports Sam had read off to him.

            “Nikki is part of the Glenn family.  She was apparently saying over with a friend when it happened.  She came home, no one was there, but all the cars were still at the house.  She checked all of her relatives’ houses.  Everyone’s gone, but all of the vehicles are still there.”

            “Uh, when might we be able to speak with her?”  Sam asks.

            The officer explains that because of the events, Nikki isn’t at school today.  She’s at home – she apparently didn’t want to stay with anyone and is hoping a family friend might come by or call with some news of knowing their whereabouts.  The officer offers to call this girl to let her know some agents are on their way to speak with her.  The agents agree it would be a good idea, ad write down the directions to the girl’s home.  Thanking the officer, they leave.

            “The only survivor in an attack against her family?  Sound kinda of to you?”  Dean asks his brother once they’re back on the road.

            “Turn right here.”  Dean makes a sharp turn onto the street at Sam’s last minute instruction.  Sam then goes on to answer his question. “It does sound kind of off.  Do you think it’s a trap?”

            “Could be.”  Dean replies.  Though the young woman wasn’t even around during the attack, this wouldn’t be the first time they dealt with a survivor that was also the killer.  They both agree they’re going in prepared.

            A long stretch of road – approximately ten minutes of it – and they take a left turn.  After that, they take a right onto a gravel road, narrowly avoiding a turtle.  The driveway is surrounded by woods, a horse farm of some sort to the right, even more trees to the left.  Had Sam not told him their destination was at the top of the hill, Dean would have turned into the house at the bottom of it.

            Finally, they park in the grass alongside a grey Ford Focus.  A teenage girl with long red hair pinned up in a clip stands in front of the garage door.  She looks up at them as they exit the car.  She has very noticeable dark circles under her eyes, the freckles in those areas rather dark and prominent.

            “Nikki Glenn?”  Dean questions, getting a nod and a ‘yes sir’ from her.  “I’m Agent Armmond.”

            “And I’m Agent Hammer.  We’re looking into your family’s case, and were hoping to ask you a few questions.”  Sam says.  They flash their badges, and she give a nod.

            They follow her through the heavy metal door leading into a messy garage, then through another door into a kitchen.  She quietly asks then if they would like anything to drink, and lists off a couple options.

            Upon request, she makes them some coffee and pours herself a glass of iced tea.  They sit at the dining room table where she sits at the head of the table and they sit on either side of her.  She keeps her eyes down on her cup, Sam thinks it may be out of shyness, but knowing Dean he could already be accusing her of something.

            “Miss Glenn, do you mind telling us what happened?”  Sam starts, drawing her attention to him.

            “I’m not sure.  I came back home after spending the weekend at a friend’s house.  All the cars were here.  It was scary silent, not even Raggs was barking when I pulled in.  he didn’t bark when you guys pulled up either.

            Anyway, no one was here, so I walked up to my grandparents’ house to see if they had seen them.  Again, all the cars were there, nit they weren’t.”  Nikki pauses to take a long drink from her tea.  She adjusts her black-framed glasses back up on her nose before continuing to speak.  “So, I went to Aunt Gini’s.  Same thing.  Again with Aunt Jacqui.  No one would answer their cellphones either.”

            “Did you notice anything else strange?”  Dean asks, leaning forward.

            They’re expecting a normal reaction.  People asking how the disappearances aren’t weird enough.  Sam takes a sip of his coffee, watching the teen’s brow furrow in confusion, or maybe thought.  There’s a lot of doubt in either of them that she’; answer any differently than those involved with their other hunts.

            “Yeah.”  She replies.  The boys quickly lower their mugs, leaning forward again.  “There are scratches everywhere.”  Nikki motions to the walls near the doorway to an empty bedroom where there are some relatively deep gashes in the drywall.  Upon closer inspections there are even small traces of blood.

            “Do you mind if I take a look around?”  Dean asks, standing.  Nikki nods to him, and he gives Sam a look.  It’s the youngest brother’s job to explain things to her.

            After Dean leaves the room, Sam shifts in his seat.  He folds his hands on the table as he looks back over at the ginger.  Nikki looks up at him.  Her facial expression reads as both worried and intimidated.

            “Listen, Nikki, my partner and I are very sure there’s something strange going on around here.”  The tall brunette says.

            “Hell yeah, something strange is going on.”  Nikki exclaims, catching Sam off guard.  She quickly apologizes for her language and outburst.

            Sam waves her apology away, asking her what she means.  She tells him about the tapping and scratching at her walls and windows.  People always try to justify the noises with tree branches, but there are none near her room.  He assures her there’s nothing to be afraid of.  That it’s probably just paranoia that she feels she’s being watched – but even he’s not sure.

            “Sam, c’mon.  We’re gonna check out the other sites.”  Dean says, returning from the garage.

            “Um, yeah.  So,” he grabs a piece of paper and scribbles down a cell number, “if anything happens, give me a call.”

            Nikki nods.  She folds the note and puts it in her pocket.  Before the two men leave, they ask about hotels nearby.  Nikki directs them to the Makenzie Inn just around the block from the Police Station.  She warns them about it being haunted which Dean chuckles at.

            About three hours later, they finish checking each property.  They’re all surrounded by trees and fields.  Each property is littered with scratches and blood splatters, obvious signs of forced entry – busted in doors, and broken locks –, and some signs of occupants having pets, but there aren’t any around.

            “So, ten people missing, one survivor.  A skittish girl who wouldn’t make eye contact or really speak above a whisper.  You can’t tell me that’s not a little suspicious.”  Dean says, glancing at Sam in his peripheral vision.  They’re back on the stretch of road leading back to the main part of town, driving past field after field of corn and soy beans.  “I mean, she lives in a secluded part of the woods.”

            “Not completely secluded.  Someone lived about a mile across from her house.”  Sam argues.  “She’s grieving, Dean.  Most people go through a quiet phase.”

            After reaching the police station, they circle the block and find the Mackenzie Inn.  It certainly looks haunted, and the dark fall sky in the background doesn’t help.  Apparently they don’t usually rent out their rooms, but after showing their badges, explaining that they’re there or the missing persons case, and also explaining that there isn’t another establishment close enough, they’re handed a key.  They take their bags up the stairs and set up.  Dean decides to heed Nikki’s warning about the place being haunted, and scans for EMF.  There are some low readings, not enough to raise any alarm.  They set up some salt lines and place iron near their beds.  With no internet to speak of – the library’s across the street has bad connection – there’s no research Sam can do on his laptop.

            Sighing softly, the taller of the duo looks over at a clock.  It’s past seven.  He points this out to his older brother, and they head downstairs for some dinner.

            They take a seat at a small table against a wall.  Not long later, a young woman comes over with two menus.  “Good evening.  My name is Sarah, I will be your waitress this evening.  What can I get you two to drink?”  Dean orders himself and Sam a beer, which Sarah writes on her notepad.  “What’s the occasion?”  She then asks, noticing their suits.

            “We’re helping with the Glenn case.”  Dean says, folding his hands on the table.

            “Oh.  Tragic isn’t it?  They used to come here pretty often for a steak dinner.”  Sarah says, frowning slightly.  “Anyway, I’ll go put your drinks in.”

            They nod to her, and she makes her way to the kitchen.  The officer wasn’t kidding, the Glenn family really is well-known and liked in the area.  Really makes them wonder what will happen to this town now that they’re gone.  Neither of the brothers actually believes any of them are alive by this point.

            “So... claws.”  Dean starts. “Maybe a werewolf?”

            “I don’t think a werewolf is going to abduct ten people from their homes in a single weekend.”  Sam says.  Dean nods, muttering about his younger brother making a good point while he looks over the menu.

            Sarah comes back with their drinks, asking them if they’re ready to order.  Sam orders some soup and a salad while Dean orders a cheeseburger and fries with “no rabbit food, thank you”.  After the waitress leaves again, they resume their conversation.  They bring up just about every supernatural creature that could or would have been able to do it, but just about everything gets ruled out.  They have no leads.

            After eating and paying for dinner, they go back upstairs to rest up for the night.

 

            “I’m telling ya, Sammy, I can’t think of anything else.”  Dean says while purchasing some donuts from the local grocery store.

            “It has to be something.  What haven’t we considered yet?”  Sam argues, trying to keep his brother focused.

            “If it’ll make you feel better, Sammy, we’ll go check through the woods today.”  Dean compromises.  “But can we at least eat first.”

            After a quick breakfast, the Winchesters are back on the road.  They drive ten minutes back to the somewhat out of the way wooded area labeled Glennwoods Lane by a mostly hidden green sign nailed to a tree.  They notice the grey Ford Focus is gone, which leads them to believe Nikki has returned to school.  Parking where they had the day before, they get out in their normal jeans and flannel – a suit would have been impractical.

            They search the brush for tracks, blood, torn clothing, or really any signs that something had come through.  They find a few small things such as scratches in trees almost identical to the ones left in the victims’ homes, and small traces of blood.  The traces of blood get more plentiful the further they go.

            Dean bends down to pick something up, but stops when he gets a better look at it.  “Sammy.”  He calls his younger brother over.  “That’s human, right?”  He’s pointing at a bone.  A rather large bone that’s broken in half, possibly a femur, coated in blood and chunks of meat.

            “I’m pretty sure.”  Sam says, mostly confirming Dean’s suspicions.  “And I’m pretty sure that’s the rest of whoever it belongs to.”

            Dean looks up where Sam’s looking.  Up in the tree above them, tangled amongst the branches, is a corpse mutilated beyond recognition.  Many limbs are missing, the blood is dried and smeared on the little flesh left and the bones.

            The brothers quickly make their way around the tree, finding more maimed corpses.  Exactly ten in total.

            Sam takes a deep breath.  “I’ll go call the police.”  He says.  Taking his phone out of his pocket, he begins walking away in search of cell connection.  While he does this, Dean takes a closer look at the corpses.  The flesh is ripped and torn.  So are the clothes.  It’s almost like they were devoured…

            Sam jogs back and tells Dean the police will be arriving shortly along with the research team involved with the case.  The older of the two says he’ll stay near the bodies while Sam flags down the cars when they arrive.

            It doesn’t take long, of course.  Such a small town, it wouldn’t take more than fifteen minutes to get from one side of it all the way to the other.  The scene doesn’t take long to set up.  The bodies are quickly covered and removed from the trees.  Just in time for Dean to hear a soft “Agent Hammer?  What’s going on?”

            Turning, the brothers see Nikki standing just outside of the caution tape marking the scene.  Having just returned from some errands, she saw all the cars and people leading into the woods not far from her house.  She’s confused and worried, but above all she’s scared.

            Sam makes his way over to her.  “Um, Miss Glenn, there’s no easy way to put this…”  He begins to trail off, trying to find the right words.

            However, Dean picks up his slack, “Your family’s dead.”  He says rather bluntly.

            Her eyes widen, her hand moving to cover her open mouth.  Sam looks at Dean is surprise, earning a harshly whispered ‘what?’ from the elder sibling.  Nikki falls to her knees with a gasp.  When her gasping becomes more erratic, almost frantic, Sam ducks under the tape to kneel beside her.  She waves him back, though, pulling a red inhaler out of her pocket.  After taking two puffs, her breathing begins to return to normal.

            “They’re all dead?”  She asks.  Sam confirms, and a soft sob escapes her.  “W-what could have…?”

            “We don’t know yet,” Dean jumps in, “but we’re gonna find out.”

            The brothers lead Nikki back into her house while the stuff in the woods is finished up.  Sam makes her a mug of hot tea to calm her down, which she really appreciates.  Dean watches her lift the mug with almost violently trembling hands.

            “Do you need to go to a doctor?”  He asks after she almost spills the drink.

            “It’s mostly a side effect of my inhaler.”  She says in a hushed voice.

            “Agents.”  The two look up at the officer that addressed them standing in the kitchen.  They nod.

            “will you be alright by yourself?”  Sam asks, receiving a nod and a slightly snarky comment about how she’s seventeen and is sure she can take care of herself.  He reminds her to not be afraid to call.

            The two pretend agents walk out with the officer, receive the report, and are on their way back to the inn.  Dean complains about the report the whole time.  The police are convinced that animals are the family.  How did the end up in the trees?  A question for another time apparently.  They plan on looking into it, but not at the current moment.

            After another quick dinner, they settle down for the night.

            Their rest is interrupted by Sam’s cell ringing at two in the morning.  He quickly grabs it and answers with a groggy “Hello?”

            “A-agent Hammer?”

            Sam wakes up a bit more, sitting up.  “Nikki?”

            “It’s in my house.”  She whispers, breathing shakily.  “I should have known better, but I heard my stepmom yelling, and I –” she stops talking and a howling can be heard.  “I don’t know what it is, but p-please hurry.”

            Sam is already putting his shoes on and waking Dean up.  She keeps talking to him, but the sound is suddenly cut off.  The last thing they head before the phone call ends is Nikki screaming.

            The Winchesters quickly grab up their bags and rush out – not without leaving a note and payment on the front desk.  During the drive, they discuss what it could be.

            “What do we know that has excellent nocturnal hunting skills and voice mimicry?”  Sam says out loud as Dean’s speeding down the country backroad.

            Dean snaps his fingers, and they say simultaneously, “Wendigo.”

            The next time they get out of the Impala, they’re armed with homemade flamethrowers and flashlights.  Sam immediately heads for the house while Dean checks around it.  The door is practically off its hinges; fresh blood decorates the walls.  Though not a lot, it is enough to raise concern.  How long has she been bleeding, and how much?

            A loud screeching howl breaks the silence.  Sam quickly looks out the nearest window to see Dean shining his flashlight across the tree trunks, casting deformed shadows.

            Dean holds his fiery weapon ready.  He can hear something scrambling through the brush in his direction.  He turns off his flashlight, pocketing it as he draws out his lighter.  The flickering flame is held ready in front of the homemade weapon, and is about to torch whatever chares out of the woods until he realizes it isn’t a monster craving human flesh.  Nikki charges right into him in an obvious panic.  She draws her hand back, turning on a taser, and is about to jab him in the gut with it.

            “Whoa!  Whoa!  Get inside!”  Dean yells, jumping back.  That explains what the pained screech coming from the woods was about.

            He pushes her past him after she turns the weapons off, and she runs into her home where Sam quickly keeps her by his side.

            He explains what’s going on, the fact that there’s a monster that has apparently been stalking her woods for a very long time now.  He isn’t too surprised how quickly she accepts the truth about everything.  The large cuts on her upper arm concern him, but treating them will have to wait.  He asks her to gather some first aid supplies, and she’s quick to do so.

            Right as she returns with the kit, Dean runs through the broken doorway.  A howling can be heard not far behind him, and he deformed and elongated humanoid monster emerges in the doorframe.  Nikki’s breathing hitches, then quickens.  Dean unsuccessfully tries to light his flamethrower, but is knocked into the cabinets before he gets it.

            It’s now up to Sam.  He quickly lights the flamethrower as the wendigo charges at them.  Without so much as a word, he sets the creature ablaze.

            “Go, go, go!”  He exclaims, pushing Nikki past the flaming and flailing monster, and grabbing Dean as they get out of the home before it, too, goes up in flames.


	2. The Road So Far

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The brothers agree to take Nikki in, and begin a long car ride in the Impala with a panic-y, traumatized ginger that gets carsick...

            Sam has Dean hold a flashlight as he treats Nikki’s arm wounds.  She stares blankly at the burning house the whole time.

            “There you go.”  Sam says as he stands.  Nikki looks down at the bandages.

            Standing, she grabs a suitcase off the ground the boys hadn’t noticed before.  When asked, she explains that she had been bringing it back inside when the wendigo called out to her.

            “What do I do now?”  The teen asks as the guys stand.  “I have no one, nowhere… what do I do now?”  She’s crying, trembling with sobs.

            The brothers exchange looks, sharing a mental conversation.  They can’t leave her there, it’s not safe.

            Finally, Dean walks over and takes the suitcase from the bawling girl.  Nikki looks up at him, confused, but tears still spilling.  By this point, they won’t stop.  She watches as he puts it in the back seat of the Impala.

            “You comin’?”  he asks, holding the door open.

            “Are you sure?”  She asks, sniffling.  She hardly knows them, but they did save her life.  They also confirmed her beliefs in the supernatural and burned down her home.

            “I mean, you’ll probably have to change your name, and most of what we do is illegal, but it really doesn’t look like you have much a choice.”  Dean explains with a shrug.

            “I didn’t think you were real agents.”  She says, walking towards the vehicle.  “What are your real names, then?”

            “I’m Dean, this is my baby brother Sam.”  Dean says as Nikki climbs in the backseat of the Impala.  Sam glares at him from over the roof of the car, annoyed.  “And if you hurt this car in any way I will kill you.”  With that, he closes the door and gets in the driver’s seat.  Within minutes, they’re on the road back to the bunker.

            While they had told her it was going to be a long drive, in no way was she prepared for a long nighttime drive.  Almost nothing in visible through the Impala’s windows.  She can just barely make out shadows of trees and fields passing by.  It’s a new moon night, and the stars aren’t bright enough in the area to help her vision.  She tries focusing on the stars, but even they can’t distract her from the churning in her stomach.

            Something, anything, but no topic can be brought up at the moment.  Sam’s asleep in the passenger’s seat, and if she’s honest, Dean kind of intimidates her.  Deciding to take Sam’s example, she leans her head against her window to sleep.  However, the shaking and bumping due to the poor country roads only serves to make her feel more ill.

            A groan of discomfort escapes as she curls in on herself slightly.  With the radio turned down, this does not go unnoticed by Dean.

            “Hey, you alright back there?”

            Startled, Nikki jumps slightly.  She sits up and sees Dean eyeing her cautiously in the rearview mirror.

            “Yeah, just feeling a little sick.” Nikki responds.

            “Don’t you get sick in my car.  There’s a plastic bag back there.  If you need it, use it.”

            She’s quick to find the bag he’s talking about, and holds it in front of her.  She doesn’t actually get sick, though.  There are some instances Dean refers to as “close calls”, but she hasn’t thrown up yet.

            Suddenly, the vehicle pulls over to the side of a deserted highway.  For a moment, Nikki’s actually afraid that he’s going to drop her here, but she can’t think of a reason he would.

            Dean nudges Sam a couple times, and he wakes with a bit of a start.  As Sam is stretching, Dean tells him to get in the back.

            “What?”  Sam asks groggily and confused.  For a moment, he forgot they have a second passenger.

            “She is not getting sick in my car.  Get in the back.”  Dean explains, and Sam drags himself out of the passenger’s seat.

            Nikki apologizes to him as they change seats, but he simply waves her off tiredly.  Not even ten minutes after they’re back on the road, and the giant is asleep once more.  Looking back at him, Nikki envies his ability to sleep.  Turning to look at him, though, is not a good decision, and she turns back around to face the front.  She exhales, slow and sharp, as she adjusts her grip on the bag.

            “You have got to be kidding me.”  Dean says, hitting his hand on the steering wheel.  “When are you not car sick?”

            Nikki’s grip tightens at his irritated tone.  She keeps the bag close to her chest and her legs pulled up close against her.  “Whenever it’s light out, or when I’m driving.”  She replies.

            “Oh, no.  You are not driving my baby.”  His grip on the wheel tightens protectively.

            “I never asked to.  I was just saying.”

            Thinking about it, there’s only a couple more hours until the sun is up.  Dean just needs to find a way to get her to sleep until then.  There are some horse tranquilizers in the trunk.  He considers that idea, but discards it.  She’ll probably fight back against him if he came at her with a needle.  There is another way, though.

            Spotting a small gas station, he turns in quickly.  This causes Nikki to clutch her bag a little tighter, and Sam to hit his head on the window and wake up.  Dean parks the car around the back, and rushed inside.

            “What’s he doing now?”  Sam asks, leaning forward.  Nikki looks over at him and gives a shrug.

            When Dean returns, he tosses a large, sealed bottle at the motion sick teen.  It smacks her in the forehead with a loud rattle before falling to her lap.  Picking up the bottle, she reads the label aloud.

            “Dramamine?”

            “Yep.  Now dope up, I don’t need you getting sick in my car.”

            Shrugging, Nikki asks for something to drink.  She’s handed a flask.  After noticing her skeptical look, Sam assures her it’s just water.  With another shrug, she takes the Dramamine, and Dean continues driving.

            The medicine has her out in about fifteen minutes.  Sam passed the sweater Nikki had left in the backseat to her.  She thanked him and used it to cushion her head against the window.  She’s leaned up against the window and sleeping rather soundly, and Dean direct his attention to his brother.

            “What are we gonna do with a seventeen-year-old girl, Sam?”

            It’s a legitimate question.  Frankly, one they don’t have to deal with often because they usually save the parents before they’re eaten.

            “We couldn’t leave her there, Dean.” Sam answers.  Dean tries to argue that she surely has friends that would have let her stay with them, but Sam has something for that, too.  “And how would she explain the house burning down?  ‘Oh, you know those agents?  They burned it down saving me from a monster that was trying to eat me’.  Do you really think she’d end up staying at a friend’s house by that point?”

            Dean shakes his head.  The girl would probably end up in some sort of institution.  No, this girl will never have anything close to a normal life again.

            “Alright, so what?  We just gonna let her crash at the bunker?”

            Sam shrugs, he has no answer for Dean’s questions.  They consider many things in the hours that Nikki is asleep.  She’s not old enough to pass for a fed, and they don’t know if she has any experience with weapons.  Dean brings up the taser, but they just laugh about it.  A taser won’t do much against anything else they go up against.

            “Research.” Sam says.

            “Well, what’re you going to do then?”  Dean asks, turning slightly to look back at his sibling.

            “I’ll go on hunts with you, obviously.”  Sam replies, giving a slight shrug.

            “Sam, we’ve been over this.”

            “Dean, I’m fine.”

            “You’re still healing from the trials.  You don’t need to be straining yourself too much.”  Dean argues.  “Just trust me on this.”

            With a huff, Sam sits back in the seat.  He’s feeling pretty awake now.  Looking at his phone, the time now reads 5:50 am, and the sun is just now rising.  Reds and oranges blend together and spread across the sky, painting the horizon and clouds.  They’ve been on the road for about three hours now, and knowing Dean he didn’t get much sleep.  Sam tells him to pull over and switch him places.  Dean refuses, but, after a drawn out argument, he relents and promises to switch after they stop for breakfast.

            It’s about another hour before they come across another town.  The Impala is parked in front of the first diner they see is open.  Dean turns off the car and removes the keys from the ignition.

            He gives Nikki’s shoulder a light shove.  “Hey, wake up.  Breakfast time.”

            Rather than waking up groggily and slowly, she sits straight up.  Breathing heavily, she looks first out the window, then to Sam and Dean.  She calms down almost immediately.  Whatever it was she was dreaming about, she realizes now that it’s not real.

            She takes a moment to fix her hair before she gets out with the guys.  Once seated at a small table, they order some coffee and look over the menus.  When the waitress comes back, Dean orders a stack of pancakes, Nikki asks for a country-fried steak, and Sam decides to have some toast – since that’s not an option on the menu, Nikki offers to give him hers.

            The table is pretty quiet while they wait for the food.  The only conversation held is one of shock and concern when Nikki simply grabs the sugar shaker and pours the sweetener into her coffee mug for almost a whole minute.  After a moment of staring in mute shock, Sam takes the shaker away from her, causing her to pout while she adds creamer and stirs her beverage.

            “Ugh, it’s still bitter,” she complains.

            “That’s wh –,” Dean cuts off when Sam glares at him.

            The argument over her health ceases when they get their food, the toast being passed to Sam almost immediately.  The brothers share a look of bewilderment at how such a small human can pack away so much food – there isn’t a morsel left on her plate when she’s done.  As they leave the diner, Nikki climbs into the backseat as Dean reclines in the passenger’s side.  Despite the fact he feels more awake, he decides that a bit more sleep won’t hurt.

            As they continue down the road, Dean sleeps while Nikki stares out the window.  If all of her electronics weren’t dead she would be listening to music or using her 4G connection on highways to browse social media.

            “So, I’m dead now, right?”  Nikki suddenly asks.

            Sam inhales a bit sharply.  “Yeah.”

            “Guess this means no more blogs, I’ll have to find new websites and remake accounts… man, and I just got to the twenty follower mark.”  The teen seems to speak more to herself than anything.  Sam agrees with her, but warns against online profiles and such.  She waves him off saying they’re only writing and art profiles.  She doesn’t even use her real name for them.

            “Does this mean I have to change my name?  Can my name actually be Nikki?  I’ll never have to deal with my god awful real name again.”  She seems genuinely excited about this.  After a couple moments of explaining, Sam understands that her real name is Ellen, and Nikki is simply a nickname for her middle name, Nichole.

            After that little story, they continue to strike up conversations to pass the hours of driving.  Sam tells her about some of their bigger hunts, close calls with death, then also coming back from death.  It apparently has happened rather often.  He tells her about vampires, werewolves, ghosts, even humans they’ve gone up against.  She listens intently, occasionally commenting on stupid decisions, or saying how they’d make great campfires stories.  They waste about hour hours of what would have normally been silence for Sam talking about those things.

            During these four hours, Sam also gets stories of what he would have called Nikki’s normal life.  He learns about how few people took her seriously about anything in her middle school years, and her struggles to find herself in high school.  Apparently the normal life he always wanted is like a living hell to some others.  She also talks about all the plans she at one point had for the future.  It all started with artist, then went to writer, to comic book artist, suddenly to business owner.  She had been practicing making sweets in order to prepare herself for owning a bookstore with a small café inside.  It was her big dream.

            She goes silent after that, gazing out the window solemnly.  Sam then tells her it’s not impossible to still own her little shop.  Plenty of hunters also own small businesses.  This brings a small smile to her face, but raises more questions.

            What’s the likelihood of her living that long?  Also, how long is she going to be staying with them, which is asked in the form of ‘How long do you guys honestly think you can handle me?’.  She won’t elaborate, however, and Sam is left to wonder.  Is she a rowdy child with little to no manners?  She doesn’t seem that way.

            Dean wakes up to answer the second question, saying things along the lines of ‘no longer than you gotta’, but Sam assures her that she’s welcome to stay as long as she needs.

            “He’s just waking up.  He’s always like this.”  Sam says, eyeing Dean.  The older brother rolls his eyes and adjusts himself so he’s sitting right.  “We’re almost to the bunker now.  How’re you holding up?”

            “Pretty good.  I’ll be glad to get out and stretch my legs.”  Nikki replies, giving her neck a nice couple of pops.  “You never did answer my question, though.  About the likelihood of me living to a decent age.”

            “I mean, Dean and I are doing pretty good.”  Sam is obviously having a difficult time coming up with a good answer.

            “You have both died at least for times each now.  I don’t think we’re all going to be that lucky, or cursed.”  Nikki immediately shoots back.

            “It honestly depends.  How are you with a gun?”  Dean asks.  Nikki explains she’s never learned how to shoot.  “You know any Latin?”

            “No.”

            “Can you wield a knife?”

            “I can cut vegetables.”

            “Right, right.  Until you get the basic skills down, you’re going to be on research duty with Sam.”  Dean explains, taking a swig from the water flask.  The younger brother begins to argue getting Nikki involved in what they do, but is quickly shut down.  “She’s aware now, Sammy.  She needs to know how to protect herself.”

            “Is there anything else I need to know about?”  Nikki asks a little worriedly as she leans forward.

            “You probably won’t live long, and you have to get a tattoo.”  Dean states.

            The teen falls back against the seat.  She’s silent and looks rather horrified.  Sam begins to lecture Dean on talking to her like that, leaving her to think.  How’s someone like herself going to survive a life like this?  She’s small, asthmatic, frankly a bit of a weakling, and a coward.  At this point, she’s pretty traumatized.  She can’t even look at wooded areas without seeing mutilated corpses, and wendigos are haunting her dreams.

            By the time the car has finally stopped, they notice how quiet she’s become.  Everything in her mind has settled, and she reverts back to the way she was at the house fire.  She starts out quiet, but then she kind of panics.

            “I’m dead,” are the first words out of her mouth.

            The car is stopped, and they all get out.  Dean unlocks the bunker door to let the ranting teen through.

            “I will never be able to look at the woods the same ever again.  I live in the woods!”  She shouts upon entering, startling a young man sitting at a table in the first room.  “Lived in the woods.  Now, everyone’s dead!  Oh my god, am I gonna die?  I’m gonna die!”

            Once she’s at the bottom of the stairs, Dean directs her to the rooms, to which she yells a ‘thank you’.  Once she’s out of the room, the young man in the first room looks up at the brothers in confusion.

            “It’s a long story.”  Dean says with a sigh.


	3. Bonding Betwen Nerds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nikki is shown around the bunker, and meets Kevin.

“Who is that?” The young man asks, pointing after the teen, concern evident in his 

voice.   
  
“Nikki,” Dean replies, "She’ll be staying with us for a while.”   
  
“Is she dangerous? Are we housing another criminal? Why is she here?” His concern is reasonable. More often than not, the people the Winchesters associate themselves with usually end up being dangerous or dead.  
  
“Kevin, calm down. It’s not like that," Sam cuts in. After calming the young man down, they explain the situation resulting from the night’s events and the case.   
  
“So, long story short, she had nowhere and no one, and we kind of felt bad.”   
  
“That, and she knows too much and doesn’t know enough to protect herself,” Dean continues, “So, yeah. She’s going through a bit of shock right now, but we’re gonna do our best to prepare her for this new world.” He sighs, sitting down at the table.   
  
“Speaking of, I’m going back to check on her,” Sam says after noticing the girl had been back in the rooms for quite some time and had not returned. Once back towards the rooms, he knocks on the door of the only room not previously occupied. When he doesn’t get a reply, he cracks the door open, peeking into the dimly lit room. He calls out for Nikki. In response, a pale hand waves at him from within a pile of sweater. Turning on the light, he gets a clear look at Nikki wearing a giant sea-foam-green hoodie, which she has pulled all of her limbs into, and tugged the hood over her head before drawing the strings tightly closed.  
  
“What are you doing?” Sam asks, walking over.   
  
“Coping,” the bundle replies, "Y'know, dealing with everything that’s happened. Hiding in a sweater while I instinctively bottle up my emotions until they become too much and I explode in either anger or sadness.” Sam’s doubtful it’s a healthy way to deal with emotions, but his and Dean’s ways are much worse.   
  
“Well, I’ve come to give you your new phone.” He says, holding out a small cellular phone once he’s seated himself on the floor across from her. “It’s an older model, I know. I’ve erased all the old stuff on it, and put all of mine and Dean’s numbers in it.”   
  
“All of yours and Dean’s numbers?” Nikki inquires, pulling back her hood after she puts her arms back in her sleeves. She takes the phone as Sam explains that they have multiple cellphones. There’s a reason for it, she’s sure, but he’s already said it and she doesn’t want to tell him she wasn’t paying attention. Instead, she raises the phone and takes a picture of the man sitting across from her. Sam notices and gives the camera a small smile. She hums to herself as she crops it and sets it as the contact photo for Sam Main.   
  
“So, how about I show you around the bunker? Dean usually starts on dinner about this time, we should be done before he is,” Sam suggests as he unfolds off of the floor. Nikki agrees, taking off the hoodie before getting up.   
  
First, she is shown whose room is whose in case something happens or she needs someone. Down the hall, he points out some doors. Some lead to rooms of weapons, others books, and others stairs. Some are even off-limits to her. Among these off-limits doors are the ones to a place Sam calls the archives. He doesn’t say why, he just says no. If she needs something from there for research, she is to ask someone else. She’s very curious about what could be in a room full of books and files that could pose a threat to her. Having always been a decently strict rule follower, though, she agrees to never go in. He also shows her the downstairs shooting range. She’s shown the guns, to which she comments that she probably can’t lift half of them. Sam laughs slightly, saying they would get to that eventually. By the time they’re back to the main room, Sam has accumulated a small stack of books and folders in his hands. He sets them down on the table and motions for Nikki to sit. She does. Sam sits next to her. “Now, there are some things –,”   
  
“Who’s that?” Nikki whispers, pointing at Kevin on the other end of the table. She vaguely remembers seeing him when she first came in, but she was so distraught she didn’t fully register his presence. “That's Kevin. He’s a Prophet and is staying here, too.” Nikki waves hello to Kevin. He doesn’t wave back.   
  
“Not very sociable, is he?”   
  
“I don’t think he saw you.” Sam whispers back, bringing attention to the fact that Kevin is very absorbed in his reading. Nikki shrugs and turns back to face the tall man.   
  
“Anyway, there are some things you’re going to need to know. Like –,”   
  
“Hey,” Dean interrupts this time, “sorry to interrupt your lesson on the supernatural, but I need to ask. Does she eat cheese on her burgers?”   
  
“Cheeseburgers, Dean? Again?” Sam asks, a small grimace tugging down the corners of his mouth.   
  
“No cheese, please.” Nikki answers Dean’s question. The older brother nods, and heads back into the kitchen. “Please continue.”   
  
“Right. Well, most creatures have a weakness to rock salt and iron. You’ll need to learn the invocation and process of purifying water, the Latin exorcism, etcetera, etcetera.” Sam pauses, realizing how overwhelming all this may be. The look on Nikki’s face just screams that it’s going right over her head.   
  
“Tell you what. We’ll start you out with the easy stuff, like what’s weak against what.” Nikki nods, and Sam hands her an empty notebook. She opens it and prepares to take notes. They get through demons first, since they seem to like to pop up during every other case here recently. She needs to be ready for them. Notes are made about salt and holy water, as well as iron, and doodles of Devil’s Traps and pentacles are drawn. The symbol she’s supposed to get a tattoo of is also pointed out. She cringes at the thought. It’s not too long before Dean brings out some plates of food. Nikki smiles and thanks him before taking a large bite out of her burger.   
  
“It’s so good.” She mutters, staring at the sandwich in awe. Sam chuckles, watching the teen devour the burger. It’s gone in minutes.   
  
“Damn,” Kevin says, watching the spectacle with slight disgust. “Even Dean stops to at least taste his food.” Nikki swallows her last bite, averting her eyes as she flushes in minor embarrassment. An air of awkwardness surrounds her. She kicks her legs under the table as she eyes her hands in her lap, therefore missing the disapproving looks Kevin is getting.   
  
“I was hungry,” She finally speaks up, her tone caustic. “Nothing wrong with that, is there?” Sam and Dean share a look as Nikki sends a glare down the table at the third male. They thought Kevin had hurt her feelings, but it seems all he did was piss her off.   
  
“And what if there is?” Kevin replies, his words drawn out, and his tone uneasy.   
  
“Then you can do me a favor, and mind you're own damn business," She replies, waving him away. She stands, grabbing her plate and taking it to the kitchen. After everyone is done eating, Sam continues to explain more creatures, their weaknesses, and ways to defend herself against them. Dean jumps in with useful comments every so often, too. She learns about werewolves, vampires, and wendigos before her eyes start crossing. She’s sent to bed after she’s caught falling asleep on her notebook as her pencil continues to write incoherent babbles. They decide they will continue the lesson the next day. She agrees, and heads back to her room.   
  
Sam starts straightening up the books and folders, and Dean picks up his and his brother’s plates. Kevin remains quiet and seated, bent over a stone tablet. He’s been working on the Angel Tablet incessantly for the past couple days, but he keeps getting stuck. There are gaps in the translations, and some portions keep translating themselves into dead languages. It’s irritating to no end, not to mention exhausting him. Deciding there’s not much left he can do in his state, he, too, retires for the night. It’s not long before the brothers follow suit.  
  
-=-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
The next morning, Dean wakes to the smell of food. Quickly sitting up, he rushes out of his room, “Who’s in my kitchen!”   
  
The sight he is met with is not what he expects. “Nikki? Making pancakes?”  
  
The short teen looks over her shoulder at him, spatula poised to flip the cooking batter on the pan.   
  
“It’s the only thing I really know how to make well, I hope you don’t mind. It’s kind of my way of showing thanks, I guess.” Dean gives a slight nod, but still looks worried for his precious kitchen.   
  
“Make sure you clean up after yourself, got it?” Nikki nods, and Dean walks out into the main room. Sam is already there, sitting at the table on his laptop with a cup of coffee near him. There’s a bottle of syrup sitting out, too. Not long after he seats himself, Nikki brings him and Sam a small stack of chocolate chip pancakes each. She returns to the kitchen, coming back shortly with her own plate. She sits more near Sam, still mostly avoiding eye contact, and barely saying anything. After they apply their preferred amount of syrup – Nikki nearly drowning her stack of two – they begin eating. About halfway through breakfast, Kevin finally emerges.   
  
“There are some pancakes sitting out if you want them.” Nikki says, taking a drink of orange juice. The young man disappears into the kitchen.   
  
“Alright, Dean,” Sam begins, readjusting himself in his seat to face his brother better, “there’s a couple possible cases popping up here and there. Not too far from here, actually. I don’t have all the facts yet, but I should have something for us by tomorrow.”   
  
“Man, they just don’t stop do they?” Dean groans, stabbing another bite of pancake with his fork.   
  
“Sure seems that way.” Sam mutters. Nikki looks between them, a bit confused, but she decides not to ask. It’s just a little too early in the morning to try comprehending stuff concerning monsters and the Winchester life. If she’s still wondering later, she’ll ask. Until then, she needs to finish eating so she can get started on cleaning the kitchen. After this small task is accomplished, the rest of the day is spent continuing Nikki’s lessons. Most of the time, she’s looking through books herself to get a feel for what she will be doing most of the time she’s there. Sam continues looking into these potential cases nearby. Surprisingly enough, there is very little talking save for Sam and Dean occasionally discussing facts about what could be doing what and where. She’s pretty sure there’s some discrete whispering about the dangers of getting someone involved at this point, when danger and such is at its peak. Also, discussions about Knights of Hell, whatever those are, are had in other rooms.   
  
By the time the night hours come around, Nikki’s covered a surprising amount of ground. She finds herself to be very interested in the creatures and lore of this strange new world. Not to mention, she also finds herself drawn to the smell of the old tomes she gets to flip through – she’s been caught smelling some of the books by Sam and Dean multiple times. The life of a bibliophile is an eccentric one indeed. At least that’s her excuse. Dean simply shook his head, saying “this is why I avoid those things”.   
  
From what she’s gathered, Dean seems to think of books and the love of reading as some sort of disease, and he must avoid it – unless it’s his very strange magazines that she happened to find one or two of mixed in with the regular books. Sam was rather upset by this, but Dean was more than happy to be reunited with his “reading material”. About two days of these same events pass before Nikki wakes up to the bunker door opening. She’s quick to rush down the hall, sliding to a stop in the main room. At the top of the stairs, Sam and Dean are standing next to the open door, both holding a heavy looking duffle bag. They are exchanging some quick words with Kevin when Dean notices Nikki still in her oversized pajama sweater.   
  
“Alright, kid. We’ve got a case, and we well be gone for a few days.” The older brother explains. Nikki looks up at them, worry evident in her expression, but she nods. Sam gives a quick wave as they both head out the door.   
  
“How long are they usually gone for?” Nikki asks, glancing over at the only other current occupant of the bunker.   
  
“Generally more than a week.”   
  
She nods, going back to her room to change. She comes back out, sitting back down in front of her books and note taking materials. Kevin looks up slightly, and does a double take. Is it just him, or does he know the characters on her graphic tee? He looks back down at the tablet before speaking.   
  
“Is that a Black Butler shirt?”   
  
Nikki looks up at him. “Yeah.”   
  
“You watch anime?”   
  
“Hell yeah, who doesn’t these days?”  
  
“You watch Black Butler?” Kevin inquires, cringing slightly.   
  
“I only like Book of Circus. The manga was so much better than the anime.” Kevin nods along, agreeing wholly.   
  
“You watch anime, too?” Nikki asks, folding her arms on the table. He  
  
“Yeah. I mean, a little.” Kevin shrugs.   
  
“Nobody watches anime ‘a little’. You’re either a huge anime nerd or you’re not. At least, that’s what I’ve gathered from the Internet and conventions.” Nikki laughs at his attempts to hide how much of a nerd he is. “Play any video games? I don’t play a whole lot, but I used to.”   
  
And from that point on, all studies were forgotten. Most of the week was spent discussing anime, manga, video games, card games, and anything else their nerdy little hearts and minds could think up.   
  
“The anime was great.” One would start. The other would either agree, or retort with, “no way, the manga was so much better.” Nikki even whipped out her laptop that was stored in her suitcase, and they watched some OVAs.   
  
Matter of fact, that’s exactly what they were doing when Sam and Dean returned earlier than expected. They both stand from their seats simultaneously as Sam and Dean eye them suspiciously.   
  
“I wasn’t being distracted.” Nikki hurriedly says, her hands clasping behind her back as she feigns her innocence.   
  
“I wasn’t not translating…” Kevin cringes at the end of his statement, turning to Nikki and muttering, “Dang it, you messed me up. I’m usually better at covering myself than that.”   
  
Dean puts his duffle bag down, crossing his arms over his chest. “Nikki, you’re supposed to be doing your research.” (Don’t be such a hypocrite, Dean.)   
  
“I was bonding.” Nikki says, motioning to Kevin. “I need to make friends. The only friend I have so far is Sam.” She motions to the tallest man in the room. “We are friends, right?”   
  
There’s a decent length pause before Sam replies with a “sure…”.   
  
“You hesitated,” The ginger cringes, a small frown tugging at her lips.   
  
“We don’t make a habit of making friends. They usually die.” Dean explains, sitting in an armchair across the room.   
  
“Well, it seems you’re kinda stuck with me for the time being, and you’ve already presumed me dead,” Nikki states with a hint of a smile, “so let’s be friends. I can be that annoying little sister you always wanted when you were younger, kind of don’t want at this age, but you still obviously love me.” Dean rolls his eyes, looking anywhere but at the smiling teen whose grin only grows more at the gesture. “Ya see? You’re already going with it.”   
  
“You’re just annoying.” Dean states matter-of-factly.   
  
“You will learn to love me, people always do. I would never have had any friends if they didn’t.” Nikki sits back down in her seat as Kevin makes his way back over to the stone tablet. “Besides, I still got stuff done while you guys were gone. I did some cleaning, did some laundry. I don’t see what you’ve got to be upset about aside from my general procrastination towards the research.” Dean sighs, shaking his head. Sam puts down his duffle bag next to his brother’s.  
  
“It’s not like you ever do research either, Dean.” The older brother rolls his eyes again, making a face at Sam.


	4. Friends in Low Places

Another week passes since the bonding between Nikki and Kevin, and the boys are out on yet another hunt.Sam and Dean weren’t sure if it was something for them to worry about, but seeing as they’ve been gone for a couple days, it must have been.Two days in, Nikki’s phone rings.Looking down at the screen, she sees the picture of the tallest brother and the name ‘Sam Main’ flashing on the screen.Taking a deep breath, she reaches for her device, wincing at the pain in her arm.

“Yo, potato.”She greets as she presses the accept button.

“Hey, how’s the arm?”Sam asks, referring to the gashes Nikki had received about two weeks ago.At some point during the last hunt Sam and Dean were on, Nikki hadn’t cleaned the injuries right, thus they got infected and haven’t healed.

“It doesn’t hurt as much now.Thanks for leaving the instructions on proper disinfecting.”She smiles to herself.“so, why’d you really call?”there’s much emphasis on the word really.While Sam is nice and all, calling on the job isn’t something commonly done.

“We need some information.After some basic research, we found something called the Beast of Bladenboro, but there’s nothing about how to kill it.”Sam replies.

“Uh… well, I will get right on that.”The teen replies after flipping through her notebook.She writes down the creature’s name and location before hanging up, promising to get back to him soon.

She begins on the internet, finding nothing but the lore Sam probably dug up before calling.Regardless, Nikki decides to read it herself to get a good idea of what the brothers are up against.The Beast of Bladenboro first appeared in the 1950s killing and draining the blood of animals.There were very few human attacks, only one actually reported.The creature is rumored to be three feet long, twenty inches high, with a long tail and a cat’s face.Apparently, a large group of professional hunters were brought in to track down the beast.The hunt was brought to an end, however, when an unusually large bobcat was trapped and hung up on a flagpole in the center of town.

Nikki writes all of this down, muttering to herself about how there’s nothing about how to kill it.

“It drained animals of blood, rarely attacked humans, looked like a big-ass cat…too werewolf-esque to be a vampire, and werewolf doesn’t match up because it didn’t go after the hearts.What do we have after that?”Nikki asks herself, flipping through her notebook.She stops on a page.“Maybe a skinwalker?”Her theory is immediately shot down after reading up on the creatures, though.If it were a skinwalker, the attacked humans would have turned into one, too, not to mention they also go after hearts.

“Usually bouncing notes like this helps, but it’s just mucking this all up even more.”She mutters, rubbing her temples.Then, a lightbulb.Hunters.A large group of hunters came to the town in search of the beast.If there’s information on this large gathering of hunters anywhere, it’s probably in the archives.

Too excited by the fact that she’s finally helping out, Nikki forgets about Sam’s warnings.As she’s reaching for the handles to the doors, someone else’s beats her to it, their hand clamping firmly over the handle so she can’t touch it.Looking up, Nikki meets Kevin’s gaze, and responds with a confused look of her own.

“Weren’t you told not to go in there?”Kevin asks, and another figurative lightbulb turns on over her head.Sam had told her not to go in there, hadn’t he?

Shaking his head, Kevin asks what she needs.The ginger tells him about the beast, and he shoos her away to go do something else while he searches.Frowning slightly, Nikki walks back up to the main room.She was so excited to do something on her own for once since she had gotten there, but now that was obliterated.She pouts silently at the table, kicking her legs back and forth, really pondering now, what could be so dangerous in a room full of books and files.If she’s supposed to be providing them with information, why can’t she do the research required to do that?

After receiving the information from Kevin and flipping through it, she still finds no given way to kill it, mostly because they never caught the real one.With a sigh, she calls Sam.

“So, after sorting through all the information I have found no given way to kill this shit.”She starts.She can hear a slight sigh of frustration.“However, if I may make some suggestions, how about silver or fire?This thing greatly resembles a werewolf, and a vampire.Maybe some of their weaknesses will prove effective.Or, or, if you can access one, I hear wood chippers are a good way to dispose of your monster problems.I don’t think there’s a way of coming back from that.”

There was a pause on the other end of the phone. “Where did you hear that?” Sam sounded slightly confused, and Nikki could hear Dean in the background saying something about an Okami.

“I mean it just kinda seems logical. Tear something to pieces… is there even a way to come back from that? Maybe burn the pieces for good measure, but come on. Wood chipper.” Sam mumbled in agreement. He thanked Nikki for her help, and ended the call.

With the problem – hopefully – resolved, Nikki attempts to go back to her normal research.Taking notes on various monsters and beings, but she finds herself mostly doodling.She can’t concentrate, and all her thoughts wander to are those doors.What could possibly be behind them that’s so bad?So bad she can’t even be around when they’re opening them?

A loud, overexaggerated sigh escapes her.She closes her books, stacking them.What else is there to do here?There aren’t many other books around, at least not ones that don’t revolve around monsters, and she honestly feels she needs a break from those.She’s not much in a drawing mood – for once – and she and Kevin have already watched all of her OVAs.

For the time being, she’ll settle for pacing.

She wanders the bunker, top to bottom.She looks through the rooms she’s allowed in, gazes at the ones she’s not.But the doors her gaze lingers on the longest are always the two large doors to the archives.It’s just full of files and books.What could be so bad?Did the brothers decide to lock away some creature inside?

Shaking it off for the time being, she decides to head up to the kitchen.She’s feeling thoughtful, which usually translates to her being hungry.

 

-_-_-_-_-_-

 

The next day, Kevin is nowhere to be found.Nikki’s looked absolutely everywhere for him, but hasn’t turned up a clue.If he is in the bunker somewhere, he’s doing his damnedest to avoid her.

With a huff, she pouts in one of the armchairs near the entrance.Sam and Dean haven’t called her back about the hunt, but she guesses it’s going well.It’s only been a few days…

Suddenly, Nikki gets an idea.A crazy idea that can get her in a lot of trouble if she’s not careful.Generally the thought of getting in trouble would scare her, but if there’s no one around to stop her…grabbing her wallet, she makes her way out of the bunker.

About an hour later, Nikki returns with two bags, and on a mission to find the only other occupant of the bunker.She’s never lost a game of hide and seek, she will find him.

He’s not in the main room or kitchen.She starts to head towards the rooms, but pauses when she starts to pass the archives.To her knowledge, he tends to spend a lot of time in there; and seeing as she’s not allowed to go in there, it would be the perfect place to hide if he really wanted to get away.After shoving the door open, bags still in hand, she flips on the lights.

“Kevin?You in here, ya weird nerd?”She calls.

“Hello, Darling.”Is the response she gets.The voice is kind of hoarse and has an English accent.

She jumps, looking around for the owner of the unfamiliar voice.A couple cliché phrases – who are you?Where are you? – stumble past her lips.

“Try behind the wall, Darling.”Is the man’s reply.

Examining the walls, she tries to find where they might separate.The whole time, the mysterious man in the walls gives her very helpful hints.“Warmer, warmer… No colder.Colder… Can you not hear?Ah, there you go.You’re on fire.”

Nikki abruptly stops.She sees where the shelves separate, and now notices some scuff marks on the floor.Her first attempt at opening the hidden doors is unsuccessful, and she falls on her butt muttering a soft ‘ouchie’.A dry laugh comes from the other side.“Sadistic fucker…”Nikki mutters as she stands and successfully opens the hidden doors.

The room is decorated the way you would expect with the Winchesters:empty save for walls lined with weapons and a giant Devil’s Trap on the floor.(I think.Do correct me if I’m wrong. It’s been a while since I’ve seen it) There’s a metal table sitting in front of the owner of the voice.

Said voice owner is a relatively short man – though he’s still probably taller than her – with dark hair and a bit of facial hair.He’s dressed nicely in an all-black suit, not to mention the iron chains around his neck and wrists.

((I generally make attempts at writing out accents, you can fix it if it doesn’t sound/ read right))

“Well, I ‘aven’t seen you before.”He says.

“Iron chains… Devil’s Trap… I get the feeling I’m not supposed to be here…”Nikki says softly, beginning to step back out of the room.Obviously this guy’s a big deal if they’re trying so hard to keep him pinned.

“No, no, Darling.Come on in.”He says, waving her back in.

She comes back with two bags in one hand and an extra chair in the other.“I can find literally no one else in this bunker.I could use the company.”

A soft snarky laugh escapes him as she sets up the chair, and empties her bags in neat piles on the table.“What’s your name?”

The demon looks up at her from the piles of bracelet making materials.“You don’t know who I am?”Nikki shakes her head no.“I’m Crowley.King of Hell.”

The teen nods her head, looking rather impressed as she goes through some leather buckle bracelet bands.“Well, I’m Nikki, the newest hunter in training.Nice to meet ya.”She looks up at him to see Crowley blinking at her dumbly.“What?You think you being the King of Hell is gonna make me leave?No way.I always knew I’d end up meeting you some day.Besides, I need someone to make these friendship bracelets with.”

“Oh, yes.Why don’t we just go the whole nine yards?Makeovers, manicures, romcoms while we braid each other’s hair.”The sarcasm in his voice is blatantly obvious, and it makes Nikki laugh.

“We could, but sadly I don’t have anything for nails, my laptop doesn’t play movies, and you don’t exactly have enough hair to braid.”

After a couple seconds of silence, and Crowley contemplating his options, he snatches up a black leather band.Nikki smiles victoriously, and the bracelet making commences.

It’s the first time Sam and Dean came back to the bunker to no complaining.Nothing about how they were one too long, nothing about being bored, no phone calls.Looking around, there’s actually no sign of the red-headed seventeen-year-old.

“Nikki?”Sam calls, descending the steps.Dean follows not far behind.

They check the usual spots – the main room and kitchen.When they don’t find her there, they begin heading back towards the bedrooms.One the way, they hear laughter coming from the archives.And, is that Crowley’s voice?

They quickly rush into the room, stopping at the opening to Crowley’s little space.They see the back of a ginger head, and hear a familiar laugh at one of the demon king’s snarky remarks.

“Nikki.”Dean addresses the young woman sternly.

Startled, she quickly whips her head around to see Dean looking at her rather disapprovingly.“Ah, hello, boys.”Crowley says, barely glancing up from his little project.

“Shut up.”Dean spat, pointing at the demon but keeping his dangerous glare on Nikki.“What’s going on here?”

“Bracelet making.”Nikki says, holding up her almost finished bracelet.

“With Crowley?”Dean’s voice continues to raise in volume, causing Nikki to noticeably shy away.

“Where did you even get this stuff?”Sam inquires, though he already has an idea from the plastic bags on the floor.

“I bought them.”The teen replies in a sort of ‘duh’ tone.

“You left the bunker?”Dean asks.Nikki replies with a sassy comment somewhere along the lines of ‘No, I went down to the bunker’s gift shop’.“Do you even know how dangerous that is?Did you make sure you weren’t followed?”

“I’m not stupid!I’m more than capable of taking care of myself.”But Dean had already left after ‘stupid’.Sam just continues to give her the ‘really?’ look.“Blame Kevin.He was the one I was originally looking for.He’s been avoiding me like a pro all day, and I am The Queen of Hide and Seek.”

Sam purses his lips and leaves the room.

“I swear they think I’m stupid.”Nikki says, slouching in her chair as she crosses her arms over her chest.“And here I thought things would be different, that I’d have more freedom without my family constantly breathing down my neck, but they’re worse if that’s even possible.”

“What is this?Babble about your feelings time?”Crowley asks, again with the high levels of sarcasm.

Nikki quickly looks back to him, her face reddening slightly.“Sorry.I tend to babble out loud a lot.”With that, she begins collecting the remaining bracelet supplies.

She leaves and closes the hidden doors, but not before slapping her bracelet on the table and snatching up his.She turns out the lights, thus leaving Crowley in the dark.Leaving Crowley to himself.He looks down at the bracelet laying on the table before picking it up.Even in the dark he can see the silver letters standing out against the red leather band, pressed between two silver charms each with a fake – but convincing – garnet in the center.What had he put up with her for?


End file.
